Review: They Come by Night by Tinnean

At a Glance: A fast paced, well plotted story that I did not want to put down

Blurb: Imagine an Earth just a bit different from ours. It may be 2014, but in this world, normals unknowingly share the planet with vampyrs. Most vampyrs rely on bagged blood, supplemented by the blood of sabors—valued individuals whose blood contains an element needed for the survival of the species.

Tyrell Small has always felt different. He doesn’t know he is a sabor, but he has the birthmark to prove it. When his father reveals that he’ll be required to feed vampyrs, Ty decides to run away. Slipping out of his bedroom window, he finds the most gorgeous man he’s ever seen sitting on his roof. Adam Dasani is a vampyr, equerry to the vampyr king, who has given Adam the task of guarding Ty. The blood of the two most powerful saborese families in the shared history of vampyrs and sabors runs through Ty’s veins. And some vampyrs intend to use him to gain power, something Adam isn’t about to allow. Adam insists that Ty can’t escape his destiny, but they both find that destiny can take unexpected turns… and following those turns may put those Ty loves—including Adam—in danger.

Review: There is so much I love about Tinnean’s writing and in this latest book, she upped the ante by delivering Vampyrs and sabors in a contemporary, alternate world. This is a new direction for her and I loved it.

The reader is brought into this world – pun intended – with the birth of a little boy. He is marked as a sabor and has a destiny to fulfill. We are shocked and distressed by the circumstances of his arrival, but we are quickly reassured that he is valued and loved. There are several plotlines that run concurrently with the story about Ty and his years growing into maturity. We learn that Ty will go to serve the Vampyrs when he turns 18, and that he will always be protected. The factions that could cause him harm are exposed layer by layer, and the interactions that play out are fascinating and horrifying in turn. Character building is one of the strengths that we enjoy in this book. Seemingly unrelated events start to add up and we get a sense of being privy to a bigger picture than what the characters can see. I appreciate the humor that is created in the feel of the story through this method of storytelling, and it is a big plus for me when I read her books.

Tinnean has great control of the plot, and each new page flows smoothly as details amass, and as each of the threads of the story weave together, we start to see the entirety of the world she has built. The world that is ours – but not quite. The characters are realistic for their ages, and the interactions flow realistically between the different levels of relationships. Ty’s friendship with Jimmy is related with different language to reflect their age and closeness, while there is a slightly more formal tone to the exchanges between Ty and his father. More anger, too, as that can be shared when you are loved unconditionally. Tinnean uses dialogue so well in this book. The conversations between characters are tools she uses to grab hold of the reader and pull them into the book. She makes us respond to the characters, and draws on our emotions by twisting the flow of the language in the story. Characters worthy of respect are described in glowing terms and are spoken of, or to, in corresponding tones. While the disgust and anger we feel for Ty’s oldest brother is a feeling curried by the words Tinnean uses to describe his actions in public and his dealings with his siblings. This level of craftsmanship has become what I expect from a Tinnean book, and I was so glad to see the skills present in this story even though the actual genre may be different for her.

I found this to be a fast paced, well plotted story that I did not want to put down, right from the first page through to the last. The smooth flow of the story as I needed to know what would happen next, and what that character was doing now, and how everything circled back to Ty, was very satisfying. I wouldn’t call this a HEA because Tinnean left the door open for another book in this world. There were a couple of characters that had possibilities and even though Ty and Adam have a happy ending, it is more of a HFN, with a HEA in the future, hopefully. This book was fun and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

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